SalaryCompareTool

San Francisco, CA vs Winston, NC

Moving from San Francisco to Winston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($1,149,215 → $283,871 median home) and taxes.

San Francisco vs Winston at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

San Francisco, CA Winston, NC Cost-of-living index San Francisco, CA — Cost-of-living index: 118 118 Winston, NC — Cost-of-living index: 92 92 Median home price San Francisco, CA — Median home price: $1149k $1149k Winston, NC — Median home price: $284k $284k Price per sqft San Francisco, CA — Price per sqft: $766 $766 Winston, NC — Price per sqft: $142 $142 Median rent San Francisco, CA — Median rent: $3,258 $3,258 Winston, NC — Median rent: $1,546 $1,546 Combined sales tax San Francisco, CA — Combined sales tax: 8.8% 8.8% Winston, NC — Combined sales tax: 7.0% 7.0% Property tax rate San Francisco, CA — Property tax rate: 0.72% 0.72% Winston, NC — Property tax rate: 0.77% 0.77% Violent crime /100k San Francisco, CA — Violent crime /100k: 500 500 Winston, NC — Violent crime /100k: 400 400 Electricity ¢/kWh San Francisco, CA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 35.3 35.3 Winston, NC — Electricity ¢/kWh: 16.3 16.3 Avg commute (min) San Francisco, CA — Avg commute (min): 33 33 Winston, NC — Avg commute (min): 24 24 Avg summer high °F San Francisco, CA — Avg summer high °F: 84° 84° Winston, NC — Avg summer high °F: 89° 89° Avg winter low °F San Francisco, CA — Avg winter low °F: 45° 45° Winston, NC — Avg winter low °F: 30° 30°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in San Francisco, CA, you'd need about $77,925 in Winston, NC (−$22,075).

Livability — San Francisco, CA: 35 · Winston, NC: 71 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 653 sqft in San Francisco vs 3,524 sqft in Winston ($766 vs $142 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategorySan Francisco, CAWinston, NCDifference
Housing $39,096 $18,552 −$20,544
Groceries $5,761 $4,840 −$921
Transportation $5,125 $3,130 −$1,995
Utilities $3,804 $1,752 −$2,052
Insurance $1,500 $2,000 +$500
Taxes $24,108 $8,183 −$15,925
Total $79,394 $38,457 −$40,937

Side by side

MetricSan Francisco, CAWinston, NC
Cost-of-living index117.691.6
Unemployment rate5.22%5.18%
Population growth (5-yr)1.1%3.0%
Air quality (median AQI)5350
Big Mac price (est.)$6.69$5.21
Median home price$1,149,215$283,871
Home price ÷ income8.9×4.7×
1-yr home appreciation-0.8%2.8%
Price per square foot$766$142
Median rent$3,258$1,546
Total tax burden (% income)13.5%9.9%
Combined sales tax8.82%6.98%
Capital gains tax13.30%4.25%
Property tax rate0.72%0.77%
Healthcare (annual)$7,200$6,600
Childcare (annual, infant)$19,000$10,000
Vehicle property tax0.65%1.10%
Avg commute (min)3324
Home insurance / yr$1,500$2,000
Auto insurance / yr$2,400$1,400
Flood insurance / yr$750$800
Earthquake insurance / yr$950$100
Electricity ¢/kWh35.316.3
Gas $/gal4.853.20
Violent crime /100k500400
Avg summer high °F8489
Avg winter low °F4530
Permit difficulty (1–5)53

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